Right so, I'm new to macs and I have bought Final Cut Pro.
My current version is 5.0.4.

For reasons I don't feel like going through time to explain, I need to get version 5.1.2.

My question is, since I bought Final Cut Pro back in 5.0.4, do I have to buy an upgrade, buy a completely new Final Cut Pro, or is the upgrade free(because I heard Apple has this weird download free updates policy thing)?

And where would I go to ask someone a question like this in the future? The Apple site wasn't much help. :/

(and also: If this isn't "software-y" enough, instead of lock/delete, move to donator's forum? It is really important I upgrade)

Crossgrade to Final Cut Studio NOW. It's $100, and the deadline is fast approaching (I think—check site for details). I crossgraded from FCP 5 in December, and am elated. I got the whole package for $100! Motion (which my video card does not support—but eventually I'll get a new Mac which will ), DVD Studio Pro, Soundtrack, etc. etc.

Go for it! Do not wait too long. It's the only way you'll get a copy of the Universal Binary version of FCP (as well as Studio) anyway. You cannot download the 5.1.4 upgrade for free.

I don't have an Intel Mac either. The only way to get to Final Cut 5.1 anything is to buy a crossgrade. The type of Mac you have is not the issue.

The 5.1 version of Final Cut is really not that different from the 5.0 version (I didn't see anything huge), but I crossgraded because I didn't want to miss out on the great deal. I also knew that eventually I'd have an Intel Mac, and Intel Macs won't run pre-5.1 versions of Final Cut so well. I was thinking ahead.

Apple no longer sells Final Cut as a standalone product. It now only sells Studio. It's trying to entice as many Final Cut owners to switch over to Studio by offering this great deal. If you miss the crossgrade offer (which I think expires later this month, but I'm not sure of the exact date), then I don't know what Apple has planned when it comes to upgrades or updates. I doubt it'll be cheaper later, though. They've had this offer going for a looooong time.

I have an Intel MBP - I first bought FCS 5.0.whatever for a song, but I found out that it was the Rosetta version and had all sorts of trouble running things (Motion in particular crashed when I tried to start it). Ended up getting the crossgrade and all works great. It's a must if you plan on having an Intel mac, otherwise you won't be able to run most of the stuff in Studio.